A known safety switch assembly comprises a safety switch adapted to be fitted to an enclosure and an actuator adapted to be fitted to a door, gate or protective cover of the enclosure and insertable into the safety switch to turn ON the electrical power supply when the enclosure is closed by the door, gate or protective cover. The known safety switch comprises within a housing normally-open contacts, one set fixed and the other movable and carried by an axially movable push rod spring-loaded to maintain the sets of contacts apart and the power supply consequently OFF.
The axially movable push rod is connected to a rotatable cam which is operable by the actuator to cause cam rotation and axial movement of the push rod to a power supply ON position. The cam may be provided with means to prevent rotation unless rotation is initiated by a correctly configured actuator.
The requirement for axial movement of the contact carrier necessarily increases the overall length of the device and there can be loss of free axial movement due to the build up of dirt and grease which may inhibit axial displacement. It is therefore an objective of the invention to provide an improved switch assembly.